Transformation means a change in participatory knowing (who will I be in the future, what will be my identity?), perspectival knowing (what will it be like to be me in the future?) and to some extent, procedural knowing (what will I do in the future?).
We could take the imaginary route and conjure up the image of our future world, or we could take the imaginal route and play in an imaginal world – a world in which events are connected by meaning, rather than by physical causes.
Read MoreThe image shows one attempt to describe twenty-first century skills (most attempts are similar). Items 7-16 describe the skills that students need to approach complex challenges and changing environments.
Yet nowhere is there any mention that it is people who are very often the most important element in both these challenges and these environments.
Read MoreWorking hard is not the same as being engaged (slavery is an extreme example where people are obliged to work hard but there is little if any engagement!).
Many – most – teachers work hard, equally many teachers are disengaged (just like many people in most walks of life).
In modern forms of work, working hard is not enough. In modern forms of work, engagement is essential. We cannot be curious, adaptable, show initiative, be creative or collaborative if we are not engaged.
Read MoreHave you noticed that propositional knowing, the form of knowing that has been dominant in our schooling systems, is breaking down?
It is hard to know what propositions are true or false in current political, social and scientific discourse. I wonder if this is a process of putting this form of knowing into its proper place. For most of human history this was the least important form of knowing: procedural, perspectival and participatory knowing were far more important. Everything you needed to know to live a good life was in the Bible or the Koran. You didn’t need to know lots of facts.
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